Ask Alice G (Future Trainee at Freshfields) Anything!

[Alice G]

Hi @Alice G @Jessica Booker - Could you please advise?

1) Is this case study exercise the article review intereview? Because the present application process on FF's website only mentions the latter. Thank you

2) In relation to preparing for an answer to 'what commercial story has interested you'? I understand we're meant to only mention 1, but in general, how many commercial stories should we prepare and @Alice G did you beyond 3?

Thank you for your time!

@Jessica Booker is correct, this was general advice and was not specific to Freshfields or any other firm.

I prepared two stories I knew in depth and followed closely in my final cycle and think that was manageable, I agree that any more might be a bit tricky to follow or know in the requisite depth. I’d also say you don’t want to have too many stories you know in depth at the detriment of having a good comprehensive knowledge of commercial developments and news.

I do hope this helps!

 

[Sim96]

I’m pretty sure Alice was just giving general advice on M&A case studies, not for FBD in particular.

I personally would only prepare 1 or 2 stories. There is a risk of over preparation if you are doing too many - just pick one or two you are truly interested in. But that’s just my opinion on matters.

Understood, thank you for taking out the time on a Sunday night.

 

[Sim96]

@Jessica Booker is correct, this was general advice and was not specific to Freshfields or any other firm.

I prepared two stories I knew in depth and followed closely in my final cycle and think that was manageable, I agree that any more might be a bit tricky to follow or know in the requisite depth. I’d also say you don’t want to have too many stories you know in depth at the detriment of having a good comprehensive knowledge of commercial developments and news.

I do hope this helps!

@Alice G


Thank you for replying on a Sunday!

Understood, so FF doesn't have a case study but only an article interview:

1) Is there a likelihood of articles on specific topics (specific political issues / M&A deals etc.) being asked. Because it could be any article – how did you ensure that you’re covering all bases.
[Presently, I scan the FT headlines and follow 2 stories in depth.]


2) I understand that you’re questioned on key concepts in the article [Franchise, Angel investor etc.] You advised that we must create bank of words from daily commercial reading and look them up, thanks J Also, are there any one-stop source(s) to the basic concepts that we must absolutely cover? I just don’t want to miss out on any basic concept - how to prep for this
[I have started with TLCA's "TCLA's Mastering the City Course"]

3) Your and Jessica’s answers on how to approach the article interview on the day was very helpful! Separately, in terms of preparation is there anything else you did for the article interview?

 

[Alice G]

Hi everyone,

I have had a lot of messages of late about how to prep for the FF AC and as I am sure you guys can appreciate, I can only give very general advice.

Here is a link to the firm website which delineates the process: https://ukgraduates.freshfields.com/how-do-i-apply/our-application-process. I actually think this page is really useful to people who may be doing interviews at any firm, not just FF, as I think it gives some really helpful insights and tips into how you can perform well.

Here is a link to where you can find what I wrote following my attendance of the non-law workshop in December 2019, before I even submitted my application, it contains some insights into what we heard about the assessment centre and very much echoes what is on the website I think. https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....erview-tips-2019-2020.1423/page-55#post-16889

I cannot offer any more advice about the AC itself but what I am happy to share is how I prepared:

In truth, I did not prepare anything specific for the written task as I did not know the form it would take or truly what to expect and so I thought it best with my time to focus more on the other two elements of the AC.

For the personal interview, I worked on my competency bank which is a table document I drew up which allowed me to input my experiences in the rows of the table and the columns were 'STARR' for 'situation', 'task', 'action', 'result', 'reflection'. In breaking this down into a table format I was able to keep to bullet points for each element of STARR and this helped me to become more concise and clear in practising my competency examples.
I also went back through my whole application and considered questions which might be asked, so if there was a grade perhaps which was lower than others I tried to consider why that might be. I also sought to consider my motivations behind undertaking each work experience I had done and what I enjoyed and found challenging about those experiences and did the same in considering my modules as well. I also went back through my personal statement with a fine toothed comb and tried to pre-empt what someone reading this for the first time might want to ask me about.
What I will say is the personal interview is very conversational and enjoyable - as cliche as it sounds, do just try to be yourself!

For the analytical interview, I printed off a couple of articles everyday in the lead up to my AC and would analyse them. When I was preparing for my Slaughters interview back in 2019, I was advised that a good technique with articles is to try and summarise what the article is about in a maximum of two sentences and to try to understand what the journalist is arguing and what their point of view might be. This can help to get your head around the article as a whole.
Once I did this, I would then look for all the words and concepts I had not grasped or understood in the article, especially if it was something technical. I have spoken of this before in general commercial awareness advice but what I did was build a bank of words and their corresponding definitions into a document and I would add words and phrases I was unsure of so I had a repository to revise from for technical interviews. My goal in doing so was that I would be able to understand technical words and concepts and feel comfortable discussing these.
Finally, as the website notes, the firm is trying to understand your business mind so try to read the articles you print through a 'commercial lens'.

My best advice with the analytical interview, which goes for all technical interviews at any firm, is to really try and see it as an exciting opportunity to have a chat with some incredible lawyers and to learn something. No one expects anyone to be perfect or faultless, just do your best, take your time, and try to relax and enjoy it.

I really hope these prep tips help.

 

[futuretraineecity]

Hi everyone,

I have had a lot of messages of late about how to prep for the FF AC and as I am sure you guys can appreciate, I can only give very general advice.

Here is a link to the firm website which delineates the process: https://ukgraduates.freshfields.com/how-do-i-apply/our-application-process. I actually think this page is really useful to people who may be doing interviews at any firm, not just FF, as I think it gives some really helpful insights and tips into how you can perform well.

Here is a link to where you can find what I wrote following my attendance of the non-law workshop in December 2019, before I even submitted my application, it contains some insights into what we heard about the assessment centre and very much echoes what is on the website I think. https://www.thecorporatelawacademy....erview-tips-2019-2020.1423/page-55#post-16889

I cannot offer any more advice about the AC itself but what I am happy to share is how I prepared:

In truth, I did not prepare anything specific for the written task as I did not know the form it would take or truly what to expect and so I thought it best with my time to focus more on the other two elements of the AC.

For the personal interview, I worked on my competency bank which is a table document I drew up which allowed me to input my experiences in the rows of the table and the columns were 'STARR' for 'situation', 'task', 'action', 'result', 'reflection'. In breaking this down into a table format I was able to keep to bullet points for each element of STARR and this helped me to become more concise and clear in practising my competency examples.
I also went back through my whole application and considered questions which might be asked, so if there was a grade perhaps which was lower than others I tried to consider why that might be. I also sought to consider my motivations behind undertaking each work experience I had done and what I enjoyed and found challenging about those experiences and did the same in considering my modules as well. I also went back through my personal statement with a fine toothed comb and tried to pre-empt what someone reading this for the first time might want to ask me about.
What I will say is the personal interview is very conversational and enjoyable - as cliche as it sounds, do just try to be yourself!

For the analytical interview, I printed off a couple of articles everyday in the lead up to my AC and would analyse them. When I was preparing for my Slaughters interview back in 2019, I was advised that a good technique with articles is to try and summarise what the article is about in a maximum of two sentences and to try to understand what the journalist is arguing and what their point of view might be. This can help to get your head around the article as a whole.
Once I did this, I would then look for all the words and concepts I had not grasped or understood in the article, especially if it was something technical. I have spoken of this before in general commercial awareness advice but what I did was build a bank of words and their corresponding definitions into a document and I would add words and phrases I was unsure of so I had a repository to revise from for technical interviews. My goal in doing so was that I would be able to understand technical words and concepts and feel comfortable discussing these.
Finally, as the website notes, the firm is trying to understand your business mind so try to read the articles you print through a 'commercial lens'.

My best advice with the analytical interview, which goes for all technical interviews at any firm, is to really try and see it as an exciting opportunity to have a chat with some incredible lawyers and to learn something. No one expects anyone to be perfect or faultless, just do your best, take your time, and try to relax and enjoy it.

I really hope these prep tips help.

Thank you Alice!! Were you asked any commercial questions within your general interview or were those reserved more for the analytical interview?

 

[Gabriella7498]

So I think one thing was my lack of confidence which I touched on in my previous post. I think on schemes it is important to have the faith that you are there for a reason and just trust in your intuition and your abilities when it comes to undertaking tasks. I also would say do not be afraid to ask for clarity and ask questions because it is best to do this and do so confidently than to go about a task doubting yourself and your approach.

The other thing for me was sadly a difficulty in presenting and speaking in front of people (it is very annoying as I am absolutely fine speaking to people usually but it is a stage fright issue which makes this hard for me). This is something I have consciously tried to work on which those of you who came to TCLA's crash course will know! I think this is where luck comes into play and it was just by chance that a presentation formed part of one of the assessments. I have, however, been able to talk about this as being an achievement and as being an example of my resilience in other interviews this cycle because i have worked on this which I think has actually been quite well received so it is always good to turn a negative into a positive where appropriate and where you have sought improvement.

In terms of other experiences, in one interview I fell down because I had been a bit too waffley in my competencies. This was so hard for me to try and change because I really hate feeling robotic and find that my consciousness of being robotic actually completely distracts my thoughts. So, whilst I was conscious of this in subsequent interviews, I wouldn't say I was necessarily concise. However, at these subsequent interviews, the length and style of my competency deliveries were not critiqued, so in a way, again, I think this could well be a 'luck' thing or just vary from firm to firm maybe. Basically, try to have a structure (STAR) and be conscious of waffling but I guess be true to your communication style too as I think this can help come into the whole 'fit' evaluation of this process too and I know I was truly 'me' in my interviews as a result. But please do STAR guys - that is absolutely key regardless!

Following another interview, it was recommended that I should have more of a structure in responding to SJT questions. I think it can be hard when they are vague, but try to think of a logical 'in the first instance I would do this...', 'following that I would do this'. I guess it just helps the interviewer to understand your thought process and can help you to organise your thoughts. I wish I had done this on paper and made more of a diagram with 'step one' and 'step two' so I would recommend something like this for these interviews/questions going forwards.

That's honestly pretty much a round-up of the feedback I have had but I really do believe luck and many other factors beyond your control can factor into these things.

Hi Alice! Would you mind sharing which steps you took to improve your presentation skills? I feel like I could improve this and would appreciate any tips and recommendations.

 

[Alice G]

Thank you Alice!! Were you asked any commercial questions within your general interview or were those reserved more for the analytical interview?

Hi I cannot offer anything beyond what I posted above I am afraid in terms of anything specific to the Freshfields AC.

 

[Alice G]

Hi Alice! Would you mind sharing which steps you took to improve your presentation skills? I feel like I could improve this and would appreciate any tips and recommendations.

Hi there To be honest, for me, I sought opportunities where I could speak publicly and I have been very lucky in the sense that through my work with TCLA and @Jaysen's support I have been able to speak publicly on a number of occasions now. I know, however, that this is a privilege and not something which is so easily accessible, not least during a pandemic. If I was at uni I would have gotten involved with debating as a means to boost my confidence in this area and practise this, are you at a university currently? I do think that practise makes perfect so I would really recommend trying to seek out some opportunities to speak publicly and present.

Other things I have done to help mindset has been to listen to other people speaking - some of the best orators are slow and take their time and really allow for pauses. I recognised in myself when I went to speak, I was so rehearsed and wanted to get the words out that I would speak too fast which led me to stumble and then panic. With that said, it can really help to try and analyse what you find quite scary about presenting/what might be holding you back. Now, I never script what I want to say but merely have bullet points of what I need to cover to allow me to be more conversational in my speech.

On the subject of mindset, I try to use breathing techniques to stay calm when I know I have a presentation or talk upcoming and I just think to myself that no one in the audience wants to see me fail or faulter. I think the panic can come from fear of messing up and being judged but when you try to really dispel that from your mind it definitely feels less daunting.

 

[Jaysen]

Hi Alice! Would you mind sharing which steps you took to improve your presentation skills? I feel like I could improve this and would appreciate any tips and recommendations.

Just to jump on this - I would highly recommend Toastmasters if you're having trouble finding somewhere where you can actually practise. They're a very supportive group, where everyone seeks to improve their public speaking skills (either through planned presentations or impromptu 'table topics'). It'll be virtual at the moment, but I've no doubt they'll be very welcoming.

 

[Jaysen]

Hi there To be honest, for me, I sought opportunities where I could speak publicly and I have been very lucky in the sense that through my work with TCLA and @Jaysen's support I have been able to speak publicly on a number of occasions now. I know, however, that this is a privilege and not something which is so easily accessible, not least during a pandemic. If I was at uni I would have gotten involved with debating as a means to boost my confidence in this area and practise this, are you at a university currently? I do think that practise makes perfect so I would really recommend trying to seek out some opportunities to speak publicly and present.

Other things I have done to help mindset has been to listen to other people speaking - some of the best orators are slow and take their time and really allow for pauses. I recognised in myself when I went to speak, I was so rehearsed and wanted to get the words out that I would speak too fast which led me to stumble and then panic. With that said, it can really help to try and analyse what you find quite scary about presenting/what might be holding you back. Now, I never script what I want to say but merely have bullet points of what I need to cover to allow me to be more conversational in my speech.

On the subject of mindset, I try to use breathing techniques to stay calm when I know I have a presentation or talk upcoming and I just think to myself that no one in the audience wants to see me fail or faulter. I think the panic can come from fear of messing up and being judged but when you try to really dispel that from your mind it definitely feels less daunting.

I think you're such a great example of someone who identified an area they struggled with and actively sought public speaking opportunities to combat it - even if they were very scary at the time.

Your talks are so good now; I'd never think this was something you had trouble with in the past!

 

[Gabriella7498]

Hi there To be honest, for me, I sought opportunities where I could speak publicly and I have been very lucky in the sense that through my work with TCLA and @Jaysen's support I have been able to speak publicly on a number of occasions now. I know, however, that this is a privilege and not something which is so easily accessible, not least during a pandemic. If I was at uni I would have gotten involved with debating as a means to boost my confidence in this area and practise this, are you at a university currently? I do think that practise makes perfect so I would really recommend trying to seek out some opportunities to speak publicly and present.

Other things I have done to help mindset has been to listen to other people speaking - some of the best orators are slow and take their time and really allow for pauses. I recognised in myself when I went to speak, I was so rehearsed and wanted to get the words out that I would speak too fast which led me to stumble and then panic. With that said, it can really help to try and analyse what you find quite scary about presenting/what might be holding you back. Now, I never script what I want to say but merely have bullet points of what I need to cover to allow me to be more conversational in my speech.

On the subject of mindset, I try to use breathing techniques to stay calm when I know I have a presentation or talk upcoming and I just think to myself that no one in the audience wants to see me fail or faulter. I think the panic can come from fear of messing up and being judged but when you try to really dispel that from your mind it definitely feels less daunting.

Thank you, @Jaysen and @Alice G !! I'm no longer at uni but will definitely give toastmasters a go and apply these other tips!

 

[Alice G]

I think you're such a great example of someone who identified an area they struggled with and actively sought public speaking opportunities to combat it - even if they were very scary at the time.

Your talks are so good now; I'd never think this was something you had trouble with in the past!

This means so much @Jaysen, thank you! Definitely wouldn’t have improved nearly as well without the great opportunities to speak with TCLA!

 

[Tarnjeet]

Hey @Alice G ,

I have an interview this Friday for a paralegal role with a private debt manager/creditor provider company- this is an area that I know little about so was wondering if you could share resources on this please. I've got the christopher stoakes book but don't think I'll have time to go through it before Friday- are there any more comprehensive, more succinct resources?

Thanks,

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hi @Alice G . Hope you are doing well. I just watched your webinar on how to tackle case studies and had a small question regarding the Freshfields' analytical interview?

My question is, there isn't any written submission/ oral presentation that is involved in the analytical interview, right?

So if you're just given an article to read and the interviewers decide the course that your interview will take by asking you questions, how is it a type of "Case Study exercise".

I mean, where are we even supposed to use methods like PESTLE or the spider diagram or even the law firm method that you talked about?

Thanks in advance.

 

[FlapJack3000]

Hi, I am sorry if this has been asked before. I was wondering when you have graduated from university and when will you start your training contract? What work experiences have you done / doing in the meanwhile?

I have graduated last year and I have been working as an in-house legal intern for the past couple of months. However, I still do not have a training contract lined up, so I am worried that the larger the time gap grows since graduation, the slimmer my chances will be.

Thanks in advance

 

[Alice G]

Hey @Alice G ,

I have an interview this Friday for a paralegal role with a private debt manager/creditor provider company- this is an area that I know little about so was wondering if you could share resources on this please. I've got the christopher stoakes book but don't think I'll have time to go through it before Friday- are there any more comprehensive, more succinct resources?

Thanks,

I apologise for not seeing this until today! I must have missed the notification and I am terribly sorry for not helping, I really do hope the interview went well!

 

[Alice G]

Hi @Alice G . Hope you are doing well. I just watched your webinar on how to tackle case studies and had a small question regarding the Freshfields' analytical interview?

My question is, there isn't any written submission/ oral presentation that is involved in the analytical interview, right?

So if you're just given an article to read and the interviewers decide the course that your interview will take by asking you questions, how is it a type of "Case Study exercise".

I mean, where are we even supposed to use methods like PESTLE or the spider diagram or even the law firm method that you talked about?

Thanks in advance.

Hello there,

I really apologise if the webinar was not as clear as it could have been regards this, the focus was more on M&A case studies where you receive an information pack to either write advice or present orally to an interviewer which was why these techniques focused on these instances. I only very briefly touched on other types of case study interviews, such as article style ones as you mention, as they were less of the focus.

I cannot say anything regards the FF analytical interview - here is a link to their website which gives some insight https://ukgraduates.freshfields.com/how-do-i-apply/our-application-process.

PESTLE and the law firm approach can still arguably work with an article style of interview though, I think. Remember, as i said in the recording, this is not prescriptive and if you feel these techniques are not best suited to an article driven interview then definitely don't worry and do just go with what works for you.

The thing with the law firm dept technique and PESTLE is that these approaches really don't need to be followed rigidly - they are better thought of as techniques and guiding frameworks to keep in your mind which will hopefully stimulate your thinking to consider issues which may not be as apparent on what you read, whether in an article or a case study bundle. These techniques are more for your benefit to help you to remember to consider these various different points and angles, which may otherwise be overlooked.

So for example, when you are doing your AC prep and reading articles to practise, you can still be potentially thinking about the law firm departments and how things like finance, tax, litigation might be relevant to what you read. Similarly, PESTLE can help in a similar way to help you to think about environmental issues or political concerns related to what you are reading about. It may not be that every law firm dept would be relevant or indeed every PESTLE point but it is merely a framework to help guide your thinking and to catalyse your mind to think about points which may not be as obvious or which, in the pressure of an AC, you may have neglected to consider if it was not as obvious.

As for spider diagrams, again, these are not prescriptive. I am just a person who finds these useful in all situations whether it be work, study etc.

I hope this helps you a little bit!

 

[Alice G]

Hi, I am sorry if this has been asked before. I was wondering when you have graduated from university and when will you start your training contract? What work experiences have you done / doing in the meanwhile?

I have graduated last year and I have been working as an in-house legal intern for the past couple of months. However, I still do not have a training contract lined up, so I am worried that the larger the time gap grows since graduation, the slimmer my chances will be.

Thanks in advance

Hi,

I graduated in 2017, started looking into commercial law in Oct 2018 and I applied in the 2018/19 cycle and 2019/2020 cycle and in the latter I obtained my TC. I start in Feb 2022 - currently doing the PGDL and will be following this with the LPC. I won't detail everything I have done as there are a few things but I hope to be able to offer some insight and help.

The experiences I probably relied on most when applying and interviewing were taken from my time working at Starbucks. I held a barista position with them and then became a supervisor. I found that having teamwork and leadership experience was invaluable and taught me a lot. The other point to mention is whilst you may think an experience does not relate to law on the face of it, it probably does. Experiences and work placements do not need to be 'impressive' the key is how you approach those experiences, what you learn and what you take away from them so there is no such thing as bad experience or experiences you shouldn't be discussing. It is down to you on apps to draw out what is relevant and how these experiences have helped to shape your motivation and skill set to want to be a lawyer. I guess what I am saying here is that building your experience and skill set is all that matters and you can build the relevant skills in a whole host of positions.

I understand your concern about the gap and think it is something many of us have had at some stage. In all honesty, I see my gap as a strength because what I did within that time really helped me to refine and figure out what I wanted in a career and my experiences in that time pointed me towards commercial law and are very much why I am following this path. Experiences are valuable not just for growth but to help us figure stuff out. So, please try not to put too much pressure on yourself, the gap between uni and getting a TC can be something we all think about but firms know how tough this process is and, like i say, the interim experiences can be really helpful!

I hope this puts you at ease a little and if you have any other questions let me know!

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hello there,

I really apologise if the webinar was not as clear as it could have been regards this, the focus was more on M&A case studies where you receive an information pack to either write advice or present orally to an interviewer which was why these techniques focused on these instances. I only very briefly touched on other types of case study interviews, such as article style ones as you mention, as they were less of the focus.

I cannot say anything regards the FF analytical interview - here is a link to their website which gives some insight https://ukgraduates.freshfields.com/how-do-i-apply/our-application-process.

PESTLE and the law firm approach can still arguably work with an article style of interview though, I think. Remember, as i said in the recording, this is not prescriptive and if you feel these techniques are not best suited to an article driven interview then definitely don't worry and do just go with what works for you.

The thing with the law firm dept technique and PESTLE is that these approaches really don't need to be followed rigidly - they are better thought of as techniques and guiding frameworks to keep in your mind which will hopefully stimulate your thinking to consider issues which may not be as apparent on what you read, whether in an article or a case study bundle. These techniques are more for your benefit to help you to remember to consider these various different points and angles, which may otherwise be overlooked.

So for example, when you are doing your AC prep and reading articles to practise, you can still be potentially thinking about the law firm departments and how things like finance, tax, litigation might be relevant to what you read. Similarly, PESTLE can help in a similar way to help you to think about environmental issues or political concerns related to what you are reading about. It may not be that every law firm dept would be relevant or indeed every PESTLE point but it is merely a framework to help guide your thinking and to catalyse your mind to think about points which may not be as obvious or which, in the pressure of an AC, you may have neglected to consider if it was not as obvious.

As for spider diagrams, again, these are not prescriptive. I am just a person who finds these useful in all situations whether it be work, study etc.

I hope this helps you a little bit!

Thanks a lot for the answer, Alice.

 

[Alice07]

Hi Alice,

If you apply for a direct training contract at Freshfields without having done a vacation scheme before do you think they would reject you for this?